Today is officially the first day of spring, but for much of the country the winter chill remains.

A late season snowstorm left New Hampshire and Boston under several inches of snow Tuesday. And more snow is expected to fall in parts of New England and the upper Midwest where below freezing temps make the first day of spring feel like the dead of winter.

CNN's Chris Welch is live in Minneapolis this morning with more. “Winter’s grip appears far from over,” Welch says. “From the Midwest to New England, late season winter storms bringing as much as 15" of snow in some areas, leading to another round of school closures and travel nightmares.”

Spring may be just hours away, but the chill is here to stay in some parts of the United States.

Blowing snow forced the closure of many roads and highways from North Dakota to Minnesota. In the Northeast, snow, ice and rain turned roads in the New York City area into slick, slippery messes overnight. Boston is meanwhile bracing for up to six inches of snow today and the New England Mountains could see up to a foot of snow.

Alison Kosik is live in Concord, New Hampshire with more on the late winter blast on "Early Start" this morning.

A storm that set snowfall records in Chicago arrived in Washington, D.C. early Wednesday. It filled the sky with flakes, but with temperatures well above freezing, little of the white should accumulate for long.

Just west of the nation's capital, it could dump up to 20 inches of snow but may turn into a mix of rain and snow as it nears the Atlantic Ocean, the National Weather Service said.

The federal government has closed offices for Wednesday. Emergency personnel will be expected to work as well as those equipped to work from home. D.C. schools will also be closed.

On "Early Start," this morning, CNN's Joe Johns reports from Virginia with the latest on the storm as it moves east.

A storm that set snowfall records in Chicago arrived in Washington, D.C. early Wednesday. It has triggered over 1,000 flight cancellations to and from airports in its path.

Just west of the nation's capital, it could dump up to 20 inches of snow but may turn into a mix of rain and snow as it nears the Atlantic Ocean, the National Weather Service said.

The federal government has closed offices for Wednesday. Emergency personnel will be expected to work as well as those equipped to work from home. D.C. schools will also be closed.

Washington suburb Arlington, Virginia, has readied snow plows and trucks in case of major snowfall.

Airlines have canceled flights to and from Washington's Dulles airport ahead of the storm's arrival. United has canceled 650 flights nationwide, most of them involving Dulles, U.S. Airways 350 and American 20.

This morning on "Early Start," CNN's Shannon Travis reports on the latest in how the winter storm is wreaking havoc on travel.

(CNN) - Kansas got the brunt of the snow as a winter storm moved past, heading toward the Northeast.

Wichita saw its second-highest storm snowfall total on record with 14.2 inches over two days, the weather service said.
Some parts of the state saw even more snow, and Missouri was not far behind, with accumulations of around a foot in some places.

The snow set a record at Kansas City International Airport with 9 inches falling in a single day. The old record was 5.1 inches set in 2010. The airport closed down Thursday.

Some businesses and universities were shut down as state officials urged residents to stay off the roads.

This morning on "Early Start," CNN's Erin McPike reports on Kansas's efforts to clean up after record snowfall.